


taste

by DozingDoves



Series: senses [2]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Angst, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Jealousy, M/M, lmao kill this
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-20
Updated: 2017-02-20
Packaged: 2018-09-25 20:09:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,009
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9841973
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DozingDoves/pseuds/DozingDoves
Summary: “Iwa-chan, what kind of chocolate do you like?”or better known as "this is 2 years late"





	

**Author's Note:**

> lmao im so sorry

“Iwa-chan, what kind of chocolate do you like?” Oikawa asks one day. 

To a mere passersby, this is probably a normal question, but for Hajime, this question sets off alarm bells in his head. “Why are you asking, Shittykawa? You know I usually don’t eat chocolate.” Oikawa knows this, Hajime thinks. So why is he asking?

“For the purpose of science!” The lilt of Oikawa’s voice indicates he’s trying (and maybe not failing, damn it Hajime) to be cute, so Hajime grudgingly replies, “Dark chocolate.”

“Ah…” Oikawa makes a sad sound, as if Hajime liking dark chocolate was the end of the world. “Iwa-chan, you can’t like dark chocolate! It’s too bitter!”

“It’s kind of sweet when it almost finishes though.” That’s really the only part about dark chocolate that he likes. The sweet, almost sour, taste of the end of the dark chocolate bar. Kind of like the guy he likes. 

He’s accepted it by now. He likes Oikawa. Simple fact, yet laced with underlying dread. He hopes Oikawa never finds out that his best friend has had a crush on him since the beginning of high school.

(‘Even before high school,’ a traitorous part of his brain whispers. ‘You just only realised it in when you entered school and Oikawa’s attention turned away from only you.’)

“You can’t like it though! Because I like milk chocolate! If we kiss it’s gonna be all weird and bitter and I hate bitter things!” Oikawa is practically whining at this point, gesticulating wildly and walking at a faster pace than normal yet all the while being so Oikawa, but Hajime’s brain has stopped functioning.

Kiss?

“Kiss?” Hajime feels his face burn up. “Oi, Shittykawa! Who said anything about kissing you?” Hajime regrets these feelings, all day, every day, especially when the person he likes acts like a five year-old. 

“Aw, Iwa-chan, your face is so red! It’s okay Iwa-chan, everyone wants to kiss me, so I’d understand if you want to kiss me too,” He giggles. Oikawa reaches out to ruffle Hajime’s head, but he dodges and hits him on the back of his head. 

Hajime will never admit that he blushed at the thought of kissing this loud-mouth, overly-proud, smiling idiot. He’ll never admit that the blush was mostly because he’s imagined it, imagined kissing the daylights out of Oikawa until Oikawa forgot he was ever teasing Hajime. He’ll never admit it.

They walk home, Oikawa laughing while Hajime listens to the laugh he’ll never get sick of no matter what he says.

\-----

Tooru hates the night. 

Don’t get him wrong. He loves the night sky, loves the stars and how they shine, loves imagining the galaxies that hide above the clouds, loves relishing in the pure moments of just him and the dark.

But Tooru hates the night. He hates how lonely he gets, he hates having finished his homework in school with Iwa-chan that he doesn’t have an excuse to call him up, he hates replying to the messages of girls he doesn’t care about. And he especially hates that he has time to think.

Now is cram time before exams for the high school seniors, so Tooru has been put on a volleyball ban. But Tooru is almost done with his revision - flashcards for all subjects stacked neatly on his table, a pile of finished practice papers beside them. So he has time, unfortunately. He has time to think.

He has time to think about how Iwa-chan covers his face when he laughs, as if he doesn’t want Tooru to know that he’s happy. He has time to think about how Iwa-chan continues to be by his side no matter how annoying he says Tooru is. He has time to think about how much he wants Iwa-chan.

There aren’t many things in Tooru’s life that confuse him, but time and time again, Iwa-chan has confused him. It’s like they’re dancing, taking two steps forward, Tooru confessing in his completely hidden way, Iwa-chan blushing, and then one step back, with Iwa-chan smacking him over the back of his head and telling him to grow up. 

It would be easier if Iwa-chan just told him straight. It would be easier if Iwa-chan just told him “I don’t like you.” It would be easier if Iwa-chan ignored his advances completely. But Iwa-chan just doesn’t go away. He never does.

Tooru feels bitter. These feelings that he has are eating away at him on the inside, begging to come out. It's wrong to feel like that about your best friend - that much he knows. But he can't help it. It’s been a long time since he’s realised this - he’s in love with Iwaizumi Hajime and there’s nothing he can do about it.

God, he can't help loving Iwa-chan, can't help being in love with Iwa-chan, when he is sweet, when he says no but does what Tooru wants anyway. He can't help but fall in love with this selfless, caring Iwaizumi Hajime, who looks away when he blushes and acts like his entire world is Tooru. 

Tooru feels selfish, wanting Iwa-chan all to himself when he knows Iwa-chan could do so much better than just him. There are days where Tooru finds himself liking Iwa-chan’s prickly personality - it chases others away. Iwa-chan could be friends with so many other people - he didn’t have to stick with his childhood friend. But Iwa-chan stayed. Tooru is in too deep and he can’t stop falling.

Tooru hates the night that gives him time to think. 

\------

Change comes when a new girl comes to school. She is in Hajime’s class and she’s pretty - she floats around laughing with everyone, wispy bangs drawing attention to her almond-shaped eyes that sparkle whenever someone does something silly. 

No one is sure why she transferred to this school so late - and so near national exams period too - but everyone accepts her gladly. She feels like a missing piece of the class no one knew they needed. She fits in perfectly.

Her brown hair flows effortlessly as the cold air from outside blows in as she ducks her head, giggling softly at something one of the girls said. And Hajime is entranced. There’s something about her that draws him to her, and at the back of his mind he knows what it is.

As if noticing his stare, she turns her head towards him. He turns away quickly, not before he catches her confused smile. All her actions are endearing - because she reminds him of someone. Someone has done all of this before but for the life of him he can’t figure out who. 

“Ah, so Iwa-chan’s taste is Sora-chan? She is pretty,” Oikawa’s voice startles him. Hajime is suddenly aware than Oikawa has been looking at him the whole time from on top of Hajime’s table, watching Hajime stare at the new girl, Sora-chan apparently, all the while swinging his legs and eating a bar of the milk chocolate that he always smells like. ‘Her name means sky, that’s cute,’ Hajime thinks.

“No, she isn’t my type. I was just curious as to why she fits in so well with the rest of the class,” Hajime defends. He can’t tell Oikawa that’s it’s because she reminds him of milk chocolate and the smell of a light breeze and - oh, Hajime realises.

She reminds him of Oikawa.

“Well, if you want me to set you up with her, I, Oikawa, your best friend and most popular guy at school, can get you a date.” Oikawa says dramatically, nonchalantly breaking off a piece of the chocolate bar and popping it into his mouth. But Hajime notices Oikawa’s tone has changed. It’s not his usual laughter. It sounds fake. It sounds bitter.

“Shut the fuck up, Trashykawa. Get off the table before Sensei scolds you again,” Hajime tries. Oikawa smiles a smile that doesn’t reach his eyes and turns away.

Hajime makes sures to not look at Sora-chan again.

\------

Oikawa is not jealous. He’s not. He’s not jealous that some girl transferred to Miyagi from Tokyo so late in the year and caught the interest of everyone in school. He’s not jealous that she’s the talk of the town right now, and he’s definitely not jealous that even Iwa-chan seems to have taken an interest in her.

Which is why he doesn’t want to explain why he’s so angry right now.

It hasn’t even been a day since Nobutada Sora has stepped into his class and yet Iwa-chan has a look on his face that Tooru has never seen directed at a person before - the look Tooru has classified as the look of wonder. 

Iwa-chan’s eye are wide, but intense. They are focused, looking at the object of Iwa-chan’s wonder. They follow the target closely, drifted up and down to take in every single detail, but they always go back to double check. Iwa-chan won’t notice he’s staring, but once he breaks out of it it’ll be like nothing ever happened. That’s Iwa-chan’s look of wonder. 

Tooru wonders what he sees in her. Rather angrily too, as he scribbles down whatever the teacher is saying, so hard that he leaves marks on the next page of the notebook. 

At one point, Iwa-chan throws a paper ball at the back of his head that says “Stop thinking so hard, you’ll get brain damage.” He throws it back, with a new note scribbled onto it: “You’re the one that needs all the brain cells he can get, Iwa-chan~.”

And when Tooru finds a bar of his favourite chocolate in his bag later on, he thinks he’ll be just fine.

\------

In the words of Albert Einstein, Time is relative. One moment the world is going slow and silent, and the next it passes way too quickly than it feels like it should.

Time has passed quickly. It’s Graduation Day.

Yet even though Time has passed so quickly, through exams and the waiting of results and the mental breakdowns and the stress, Time at this moment is slow. The 10 a.m. sun is shining brightly in the field where the Graduation is being held. The cherry blossoms are fluttering to the ground. 

More importantly, Iwa-chan is shining brightly. He’s smiling, eyes closed, nose crinkling. He deliriously happy, Tooru can tell. Iwa-chan has been waiting for this moment forever, ever since he got the confirmation letter from his first choice university - the same university as Tooru.

It’s one of those Kodak moments, where the sun is a bit too bright, yet shining just enough that everyone is glowing. It’s one of those heart-stopping moments, where Tooru remembers how grateful he is to be the one to see Iwa-chan’s tanned skin glowing in the sun, to see Iwa-chan so happy that it hurts. It’s one of those moments where Time is slow, where every picture is perfect, where the cherry blossoms are fluttering down and catching on Iwa-chan’s hair.

It’s one of those moments where Tooru gets to fall in love with Iwa-chan all over again.

Someone in the crowd spots Tooru and almost immediately, he’s swept up in the crowd and the atmosphere of graduating. Oikawa Tooru, 18, is graduating. Oikawa Tooru, 18, is graduating _with Iwa-chan_. Oikawa Tooru, 18, is graduating with Iwa-chan _and is going to the same university as Iwa-chan_. Oikawa Tooru, 18, is graduating with Iwa-chan and is going to the same university as Iwa-chan and he couldn’t be happier.

He’s making his way to Iwa-chan, pushing through the crowd, until he stops short. Until he sees Sora-chan come up to Iwa-chan. Until he sees Sora-chan duck her head, shy, and saying the words “Iwa-chan, I have something to speak to you about. Could you come with me to somewhere more private?” 

Tooru isn’t dumb. He knows what is going to come after that. He knows that Sora-chan is going to confess to Iwa-chan. Sora-chan is always looking towards Iwa-chan, and Iwa-chan has been watching her since the day she transferred to Miyagi. 

Tooru isn’t dumb. He knows the possibility of them getting together is higher than the possibility of Tooru ever confessing. 

Tooru isn’t dumb. He knows milk chocolate and dark chocolate could never work together. So Tooru leaves.

\------

_**15 missed calls from ‘Iwa-chan~♡’ and two others. 28 text messages ‘Iwa-chan~♡’and two others.** _

_“Shittykawa where the fuck are you.” - 10.30 a.m._

_“We were supposed to go home together??” - 10.35 a.m._

_“What the fuck.” - 11.03 a.m._

_“Oikawa Tooru. When I find you, I’ll kill you.” - 11.47 a.m._

_“Even Hanamaki and Matsukawa are looking for you. Why are you wasting our time like this.” - 12.04 p.m._

_“Answer my calls.” - 12.36 p.m._

_“Please.” - 12.36 p.m._

_“Oikawa!!! Where are you!!!! this is Hanamaki btw. Answer our call at least, if you’re angry at Iwaizumi” - 3.31 p.m._

_“Yo this is Matsukawa. Your precious Iwa-chan ditched that cute girl in your class to look for you. You understand what I’m saying right?” - 4.02 p.m._

\------

_“Hanamaki and I are rooting for you, so get your head out of your ass, Oikawa.” - 4.16 p.m._

\------

It is 7.30 p.m. Tooru has to go home soon. Judging by the fact his mother hasn’t called, Iwaizumi hasn’t asked about Tooru’s whereabouts from his parents. It doesn’t feel right to call Iwaizumi “Iwa-chan” anymore, even in his head.

He takes the long route home, passing by the ice cream shop where he and Iwaizumi usually go to after training, crossing the small bridge that goes over the small river where he and Iwaizumi always walk pass, passing through the forest where he and Iwaizumi first met. Iwaizumi, Iwaizumi, Iwaizumi. He’s everywhere.

He’s sitting on his house steps.

Tooru is tired of running.

“Shittykawa!” Iwaizumi calls out. Tooru stops. Iwa-chan has found him. There’s nowhere Tooru’s tired legs can take him now. “Where the fuck have you been? Do you know how worried we were? We’ve been running all over town looking for you.”

"I thought you'd be spending time with Sora-chan." Saying those words leave a bitter taste in Tooru’s mouth. They are sharp, curt, meant to hurt the recipient - meant to hurt Iwaizumi.

Iwaizumi’s eyes are wide. “Fuck, you saw that?” Iwaizumi takes a breath, shaking his head as if to clear his mind. “That’s... besides the point. The point is, Oikawa, you need tell me when you run off."

"Why?” The sharp reply takes Iwaizumi by surprise. “Why do I have to report to you my whereabouts, Iwa-chan? You're not my mother, you're not my father and you're definitely not my boyfriend so please tell me: why do I need to report to you?" And Iwaizumi is stunned. After a moment of silence, Tooru turns around to walk away. 

The thing is, Tooru has no right to be angry. He isn’t Iwaizumi’s mother, he isn’t Iwaizumi’s father and definitely not his boyfriend so what right does Tooru have to be sad and angry about Sora-chan, a girl who even had the balls to confess to the boy she likes. Tooru is a coward who didn’t want to change anything, simply because he’s scared.

“Because I’m your best friend.” Iwaizumi’s voice cuts into Tooru’s thoughts. Tooru stops. 

“I’m your best friend, but I’m in love with you.” Iwaizumi whispers. He sounds afraid. Maybe he is.

Oikawa whips around. He knows his eyes are open wide, shocked. “What did you say?”

“I- I’m-,” Iwaizumi looks like he wants to bury himself, but his eyes flick up as if looking for words to say. “I’m in love with you. I have been, for a while.”

This can’t be true. “But what about Sora-” Oikawa starts.

“All she reminded me of was you,” Iwaizumi cuts in, head turned down, afraid to meet Oikawa’s eyes. “She reminded me of your smile, your laugh, how you get along with everyone, your hair that looks so fucking soft, your stupid nose crinkle that makes me die on the inside.” Oikawa can’t breathe. “She reminds me so much of you that I knew that if I dated her, all I’d be thinking about would be you.” Iwaizumi finally looks him in the eyes and Oikawa’s breath catches. 

“All I’ve ever wanted was you,” Iwaizumi whispers finally.

Oikawa once heard someone say, “The most painful love story is this: You’re in love with him, and he’s in love with you, and it’s like a goddamn tragedy, because you look at him and see the stars, and he looks at you and sees the sun. And you both think the other is just looking at the ground.” Oikawa is in pain.

“This can’t be true. I- I- I’ve been in love with you since fucking middle school. Y- you can’t just do this to me, oh my God, you better not be fucking lying or I’ll kill you.” Oikawa is crying, he knows this. He must look so ugly right now, babbling like a fool about how Hajime is a lying liar who lies. 

He’s too busy looking at the ground that he misses Hajime’s sigh of relief. He misses Hajime’s smile. He misses Hajime walking to stand right in front of him. He doesn’t miss Hajime shutting him up the way Oikawa has only ever dreamed of.

Hajime kisses him.

It’s like electricity, and Oikawa has never wanted it more. He’s so… He’s so happy. He’s dreamed of this day since forever.

They break away from each other, gasping. Their foreheads are touching and it’s almost as if they are sharing the same air. But Oikawa doesn’t care. He’s feeling giddy.

Their eyes meet and he can’t help but lean in for another kiss.

The kiss is good, for all the smiling that’s going on, but Oikawa can't seem to mind. He can feel Hajime's tears rolling down his cheeks, just as Oikawa's is. 

“You taste like chocolate,” Hajime mumbles. and Oikawa throws his head back laughing.

Maybe bitter and sweet do go together after all.

**Author's Note:**

> thank you for reading until the end! i don't think i'll be writing anything else for iwaoi (or anything else for that matter), mostly because i didn't even have time to finish this, so much so that it got pushed back 2 years. i hope you enjoyed this! thank you so much :)


End file.
